Supporters from across the state join Governor O’Malley and General Assembly leaders for Maryland Offshore Wind bill Signing.

We don’t often take time to mark our successes, but after three years of effort by countless advocates to bring clean offshore wind energy to Maryland, it is time to celebrate! Today, Governor Martin O’Malley signed the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013 into law. Several hundred environmental, health, faith, civic, and business leaders gathered in the Governor’s Reception Room in the Maryland State House in Annapolis to witness history.

With his signature, Governor O’Malley initiated the process outlined in the bill that will result in the construction of turbines off the coast of Ocean City. The Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act of 2013 creates a mechanism to incentivize the development of a major 200 megawatt offshore wind facility and establish a regulatory framework that will allow additional projects to interconnect in Maryland.

The law provides a “strike zone” of ratepayer protections only allowing the Public Service Commission (PSC) to approve a proposed offshore wind farm if it projects that the additional ratepayer impact is below $1.50 per household or 1.5 percent for non-residential customers.Developers must demonstrate that any project proposed will result in a net economic benefit to the state by creating jobs, economic development and protecting public health. The 2013 legislation also contains a $10 million Offshore Wind Business Development Fund targeted to small and minority businesses to assist them in preparing to participate in this new industry.

Working with the U.S. Department of Interior, Maryland agencies have helped designate a Maryland “Wind Energy Area” 10 nautical miles east of Ocean City that is expected to be leased to developers later this year.

Governor O’Malley and all of Maryland’s leaders deserve great praise and appreciation for stepping up and creating a path forward for offshore wind development in our state. This is precisely the kind of leadership needed at this moment in time to jumpstart a robust offshore wind industry in America. This accomplishment not only means healthier air, cleaner energy, and more jobs for Maryland, but also signals the growing momentum for offshore wind energy along the entire Atlantic Coast. Here are a few highlights:

Massachusetts: In New Bedford, MA, major investments are being made to expand the South Terminal port facility in order to support the construction and operation of Cape Wind and future offshore wind projects. Cape Wind is expected to commence construction this year, and the Department of the Interior (DOI) is expected to issue additional leases off of New England via auction later this year.

Rhode Island: A 30 MW demonstration project is moving forward in state waters off Block Island, with plans to also commence construction this year. DOI is on track to auction leases for additional offshore wind project sites later this year.

New Jersey: In anticipation of major offshore wind development, the firm Weeks Marine has begun construction of a multi-million-dollar vessel designed specifically to install offshore wind turbines.

Virginia: Dominion has received Department of Energy funding for an offshore wind demonstration project, and is one of eight entities that has expressed interest in securing a lease for an offshore wind project in the federally designated Wind Energy Area off of Virginia. DOI is expected hold a lease auction for this site before the end of the year.

Mid-Atlantic Transmission: The DOI also cleared the way for the company Atlantic Wind Connection – with investment support from Google, Inc. — to receive right-of-way approval for an ocean-based transmission line, pending additional review.

Federal Tax Incentives: The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is critical for offshore wind development and provides a strong market signal to energy investors. Congress is currently considering a proposal to extend the current tax credit, which is set to expire at the end of 2013.

Federal Investments: In early December, the U.S. Department of Energy announced seven offshore wind awards for projects in Maine, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, Texas and Virginia. As part of the Energy Department’s broader efforts to launch an offshore wind industry in the United States, these engineering, design and deployment projects will support innovative offshore installations in state and federal waters for commercial operation by 2017.

The National Wildlife Federation is working with a broad coalition of partners to build momentum and support for the rapid, responsible development of our offshore wind energy resources. Building clean energy is critical to protect wildlife from the dangers of climate change, but we must also be sure that strong conservation principles guide our offshore wind development activities. In a first of its kind collaboration, NWF and a coalition of leading environmental organizations and offshore wind developers have reached an agreement on needed measures to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales during pre-development activities. This collaborative agreement between key ocean stakeholders helps expedite offshore wind development while ensuring protection of the Atlantic’s precious ecosystem.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/04/celebrating-success-offshore-wind-comes-to-maryland/feed/1America Must Lean into the Wind on Clean Energyhttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/02/america-must-lean-into-the-wind-on-clean-energy/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/02/america-must-lean-into-the-wind-on-clean-energy/#commentsThu, 07 Feb 2013 16:48:00 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=74283Read more >]]>This week, the Washington Post called America’s pursuit of offshore wind energy a “tortured process” mired in uncertainty and challenges. While that is one way to describe it, National Wildlife Federation has a very different view of the prospects for offshore wind in America and the importance of overcoming the current challenges facing this critical new clean energy source.

Let’s put this into perspective

America needs real, sustained leadership at both the state and federal levels to advance large-scale clean energy sources in this country if we are to protect current and future generations from the dangers of climate change. NWF’s recent report, Wildlife in a Warming World: Confronting the Climate Crisis, details the devastating impacts we are already seeing across America from climate change. America’s reliance on high-polluting fossil fuels simply has to change if we are to confront this urgent threat, and our vast offshore wind resource presents a truly compelling alternative.

“The path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult. But America cannot resist this transition; we must lead it. We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries—we must claim its promise. That is how we will maintain our economic vitality…”

Appropriately-sited offshore wind power is a viable, reliable and clean source of energy that can move America away from polluting fossil fuels that are warming the planet at unsustainable rates. Atlantic wind power is available in close proximity to our largest population centers, and blows strongest during times of peak demand — offering a massive local energy source that can diversify our energy mix and offer a hedge against the volatility of fossil fuel prices. A robust offshore wind industry in the U.S. promises to be an economic powerhouse — with hundreds of thousands of new jobs in design, manufacturing, construction, and operation. We can no longer afford to ignore this opportunity: offshore wind power can and must be part of America’s energy future.

Any new industry is going to encounter challenges — legal, financial, bureaucratic and more — and offshore wind energy is no exception. In fact, in the case of clean energy, we simply cannot understate the difficulty of breaking into a market that has been dominated by heavily subsidized and under-regulated dirty energy sources for ages. But the imperative of confronting climate change means that status quo is not an option, and efforts to advance clean energy sources like offshore wind must succeed.

The potential and interest are there. Now is the time to move beyond these preparatory building blocks and into real action to ensure favorable, predictable markets for clean energy.

Let’s look at the Maryland example, the central focus of the Washington Post article. Governor Martin O’Malley and the leadership of the General Assembly are pushing a bill designed to spur progress in advancing offshore wind energy off Maryland’s coast. The federal government has already identified a formal Wind Energy Area for Maryland, and six companies so far have expressed interest in building projects within it.

And there is broad public support. Business groups in Maryland, as well as environmental and public health organizations, are all actively supporting this offshore wind bill as a key next step in making offshore wind a reality off their shores. A January poll found that a growing number of Marylanders and a strong bipartisan majority, 72 percent, support developing offshore wind power. Maryland residents from all political and geographic subgroups said they would pay $2 more per month on their electricity bills to support offshore wind.

“If we do nothing, large chunks of Maryland will be underwater in the foreseeable future. There will be drought, there will be famine and human pain, suffering and displacement — that’s the one thing we really do know for sure; 98.99 percent of all scientists agree.”

The time for stalling is over. Climate change has not stalled – quite the opposite. Our reliance on polluting fossil fuels continues. Our state and federal leaders must lean into the wind and take meaningful steps forward to ensure America harnesses our largest untapped clean energy resource.